Random questions about B5

[Jan]

Question...

Season 4, when Marcus gives his life for Ivanova, why don't the command staff, Delenn, Lennier etc etc, all give a little bit of their life energy to save him? I know they didn't know exactly how the machine works, but couldn't they have tried? They'd brought Garibaldi back between Sheridan and Franklin, so why not with Marcus?

While Garibaldi might still have been on station (I don't recall), the rest (Delenn, Lennier, Sheridan) were all off-station waging a war. By the time Franklin got back to the Station, Marcus had passed his life energy over to Ivanova and had been placed in cryo. Could they have taken him out and done it? Perhaps, but the decision had been made previously not to use it at all.

Jan

[Marsden]

Hello. New question: the person that speaks to Garibaldi in down below about Petrov and gives him the name Deveraux was played by Apesanahkwat in Chrysalis. Later then in season 2 in A Race Through Dark Places the same actor is one of the telepaths in the underground. Is this the same character? Beside the actor being the same the background is as well, so I'm thinking it is.

[babylonlurker]

Hello. New question: the person that speaks to Garibaldi in down below about Petrov and gives him the name Deveraux was played by Apesanahkwat in Chrysalis. Later then in season 2 in A Race Through Dark Places the same actor is one of the telepaths in the underground. Is this the same character? Beside the actor being the same the background is as well, so I'm thinking it is.

I would agree with that assessment, though it is not said anywhere I can recall.

[TurkishZath]

Well, sorta.

I'm not sure I understand what faces you have to recognize to follow
"Race." Bester is re-introduced with an explanation, as is Jason. You
don't have to recognize the guy from "Chrysalis;" if you do, great, it
adds a level. If you don't, it still tracks. The only other characters
are our reglars; so I'm confused as to what there was left to confuse them.

-JMS
rec.arts.sf.tv.babylon5.moderated
1/26/1995 8:30:00 AM

http://jmsnews.com/msg.aspx?ID=1-12285&topic=Science%20fiction

[JoeD80]

played by Apesanahkwat in Chrysalis.

Actually that's Gianin Loffler. And yes it's the same character.

[Marsden]

Actually that's Gianin Loffler. And yes it's the same character.

I got the actor's names wrong? but my question answered, thx.

I seem to be wrong about most things, if I were in B5 I'd be Zack's taylor (not the Minbari, the human one that isn't shown that can fit his uniform.)

[Marsden]

Time for another weird question. HA! What other kind do I ask?


This concerns Mr. Wells in "The Fall of Night". Does anyone think that Mr. Wells was really not that bad of a guy and didn't want Sheridan to be punished or was he just being the smarter/good guy to Mr. Lanz's bad/less smart guy.
Anyone have any thoughts?

Anyone at all?

[Jonas]

Time for another weird question. HA! What other kind do I ask?


This concerns Mr. Wells in "The Fall of Night". Does anyone think that Mr. Wells was really not that bad of a guy and didn't want Sheridan to be punished or was he just being the smarter/good guy to Mr. Lanz's bad/less smart guy.
Anyone have any thoughts?

Anyone at all?

I think he is the ultimate creep, a human Morden. Believes in nothing except power and position; smiles at your face while stabbing you in the back. Lantz is just a silly old fart who thinks he's doing the right thing.

[WorkerCaste]

Mr. Wells is a survivor. Good at telling which way the wind is blowing and making sure he's in a position to take advantage of it. He shows up again in Crusade proving that he survived the fall of the Clark regime, albeit with less power than when we saw him on B5.

[DaveNarn]

This caught my attention in War Without End Part Two.

During the final scene in the B4 observation dome, Zathras is explaining to Sinclair, Delenn, and Sharidan the significance of 'The One'.
As he turns to each he says;
'"As you are three...as you are one...as you are the one.
(to Sinclair)
Your are the One who was.
(to Delenn)
You are the One who is.
(to Sharidan)
You are the One who will be.

And then the three will be two, and the two will create the one.
You are the beginning of the story (to Sinclair), the middle of the story (to Delenn), and the end of
the story (to Sharidan)...which creates the next great story."

If taken literally, Sinclair is about to go back in time, leaving John and Delenn.
They have a son - David. Is David the next great story Zathras is speaking of?

Or was he just saying as each does their part the sum of the whole dwindles?

I'm confused by Zathras.

[Chipmunk]

I'm confused by Zathras.

"Yes, [he] [is] a mystery. And I am both terrified and reassured to know that there are still wonders in the universe, that we have not yet explained everything."

Couldn't resist.

Personally, I'm waiting both eagerly and patiently for JMS to tell us the rest of the stories.

I waited three decades for OSC to tell us what happened to the rest of the Battle School kids from Ender's Game. I can (almost) wait that long for B5. I know JMS loves his 'verse, and will continue it, in some form, some day.

[Jan]

This caught my attention in War Without End Part Two.

During the final scene in the B4 observation dome, Zathras is explaining to Sinclair, Delenn, and Sharidan the significance of 'The One'.
As he turns to each he says;
'"As you are three...as you are one...as you are the one.
(to Sinclair)
Your are the One who was.
(to Delenn)
You are the One who is.
(to Sharidan)
You are the One who will be.

And then the three will be two, and the two will create the one.
You are the beginning of the story (to Sinclair), the middle of the story (to Delenn), and the end of
the story (to Sharidan)...which creates the next great story."

If taken literally, Sinclair is about to go back in time, leaving John and Delenn.
They have a son - David. Is David the next great story Zathras is speaking of?

Yeah, I've always wondered why that one line (bolded) was cut from the episode. Taken at face value, it does seem to indicate that David is going to be the "one yet to come" space on the Grey Council that Delenn leaves empty when she re-forms it.

Or was he just saying as each does their part the sum of the whole dwindles?

I'm confused by Zathras.

I think we're supposed to be confused by Zathras. Great character!

Jan

[JasonDavis]

By the time "War Without End" was in production, JMS would have been working under the assumption that Babylon 5 would end with season four. Given that David Sheridan (the younger) featured prominently in his original plans for season five--which was extremely unlikely to be produced at the time--the line in question would have been a logical trim to get a desperately overlong set of episodes down to time.

Just my two cents from rummaging through the archives.

[Marsden]

And based on Peter David's Centauri trilogy, that would be a very interesting story. David Sheridan is decended from the three of them, Valen being Delenn's ancestor.


Zathras seems like one of those people that isn't an eloquent speaker so therefore people don't regard as intelligent but he really knows quite a bit. There are so many other stories that can spring off of this area, about Valen in the past and David in the future, I hope we get some someday in some form. More novels if not more shows or movies. I'm re-re-reading the Centauri trilogy again now, I recomend it if you haven't read it. It doesn't say anything about what David will be but it introduces him and gives that other story we might someday have a starting place. The rangers and presumably the alliance are still around in a million years, there's lots of territory to cover there.


Btw, thanks Jonas and Workercaste for your insights. I never thought of Mr. Wells in terms of Morden, but it sounds very logical, I guess I was taken in by him as well, I just didn't think he was that bad. But I think you're right. He is a person that will say what ever he needs to to come through ok for himself, the ultimate .politician.

[Babel-17]

Has anyone ever asked JMS about the TV show, The Big Bang Theory, and its character Sheldon who is the sole member of the gang to make snide remarks about B5? Apparently Leonard and the rest are fans and they have the DVD's.

Given how TBBT has lots of guest appearances by SF notables, Will Wheaton, Summer Glau, etc., I always see Sheldon's digs as an opportunity to have a B5 cast member or someone like JMS do a guest appearance to give Sheldon his comeuppance.

Any thoughts?